Monday, February 27, 2012

Jonah Hill, James Franco Team For Kaira Pitt-Created Drama True Story

EXCLUSIVE: Jonah Hill had a lot fun dealing with fellow Oscar nominee and Moneyball producer Kaira Pitt they’re in business on something else-based film. Hill and James Franco are affixed to star in True Story, the Rupert Goold-directed adaptation of the memoir by journalist Michael Finkel. Pitt and Dede Gardner’s Plan B is are creating. Like Moneyball, this really is another chance for Hill to veer from his comic persona. He'll play Finkel, who had been a author in the NY Occasions Magazine in 2002 as he found that Christian Longo was taken in Mexico following a lengthy stint around the FBI Ten Popular List for killing his family. The strange part was he have been living underneath the identity of Finkel. In the morning, the actual Finkel was fired through the editors from the Occasions, immediately after they went an editor’s note proclaiming he had falsified areas of an investigative article. His career appeared over, until Longo (who’ll be performed by Franco) asserted that the actual Finkel was the only real journalist he'd speak with. That brought to some surreal relationship using the accused killer, who had been attempting to declare his innocence. For that real Finkel, it had been an chance to solve the mystery and possibly redeem themself like a journalist. The project, initially setup at Vital, was handed to Plan B and it has been removed to bankers. I’m told that the deal come in place possibly later within the week. Hill is repped by WME and Karl Austen, Goold by WME and United kingdom-based U . s . Agents and Franco by CAA and Miles Levy.

Friday, February 24, 2012

Spartacus' Dustin Clare: Gannicus Returns to the Arena to Right Wrongs

Olivia has been kidnapped. Peter still hasn't found a way home. And David Robert Jones is running amok in both universes. These are just a few of the problems the Fringe crew faces in this week's new episode, "The End of All Things" - which also happens to be the final episode for nearly a month. As Peter (Joshua Jackson) attempts to recover his lost love - new timeline Olivia (Anna Torv), to be clear - he'll come face-to-face with the man who once saved his life: the mysterious Observer known as September (Michael Cerveris), who will offer up a wealth of answers as to who the Observers truly are. Here are five teases from Friday's episode to whet your appetite: Read More > Other Links From TVGuide.com Blair BrownJared HarrisJoshua JacksonMichael CerverisFringeAnna Torv

Thursday, February 23, 2012

J.K. Rowling to write First Novel for Grown ups

Christian Bale and Natalie Portman Last year's large Academy Award those who win - Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, Colin Firth and Natalie Portman - will require happens again on Sunday, but this time around as presenters, the academy introduced Thursday.Chris Rock to provide at OscarsBale and Leo both received Academy awards for his or her supporting roles within the Fighter, while Portman (Black Swan) and Firth (The King's Speech) required home Oscars for his or her lead performances.Hugo, The Artist lead Oscar nominationsThe foursome joins a remarkable listing of formerly introduced presenters, including Halle Berry, Bradley Cooper, Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz, Chris Rock - as well as The Muppets, Kermit and Miss Piggy.The 84th Oscars, located by Billy Very, airs Sunday, February. 26 at 8:30 p.m. ET/ 5:30 p.m. PT on ABC.

Halpern exits eOne

Entertainment One dramatic programming prexy Noreen Halpern will leave the studio after three years. Halpern oversaw all scripted series and long-form projects for eOne, including AMC's "Hell on Wheels," HBO's "Hung," NBC's "The Firm," ABC's "Rookie Blue" and Syfy's "Haven." "It's been an exciting journey, and I'm really proud of the shows we've put on the air," said Halpern, who will remain with the company for a brief period to help with the transition. "There's an incredible development slate I'm leaving with a wonderful team who will keep things moving forward. But there are other mountains to climb, and I'm looking forward to that." A former creative exec at Alliance Entertainment and Alliance-Atlantis, Halpern and partner John Morayniss co-founded Blueprint Entertainment, which eOne acquired in 2008. Her speciality with eOne was non-traditional financing for straight-to-series TV drama orders. "Noreen's countless contributions enabled eOne Television to expand and flourish year after year," said eOne filmed entertainment prexy Patrice Theroux. "Noreen is a creative leader and visionary in the industry, and we will certainly miss her presence. We're happy to see her embrace the new challenges and opportunities the ever-changing television environment has to offer and are looking forward to working with her on television projects in the future." Contact Jon Weisman at jon.weisman@variety.com

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Piracy push planned in Hollywood

Hollywood and its supporters are feeling something akin to a hangover following the sidelining of the Stop Online Piracy Act and a companion bill in the Senate.It's been just over a month since an Internet blackout called attention to the legislation, and an accompanying protest forced congressional leaders to put it on hold. Although emotions have been somewhat diffused, frustrated lobbyists and skittish lawmakers don't seem in a hurry to jump back into the fray to try and craft a compromise. The election year makes it even less likely that Congress will act on something if it appears the legislation could become a liability.But that doesn't mean that the problem of piracy will be off the radar of the average consumer. In fact, this spring, consumers will start to get a very clear message from the entertainment industry as it tries to curb online copyright infringement. Following a landmark agreement finalized last year with the studios and record labels, the country's major Internet service providers, including AT&T, Cablevision, Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Verizon, will start sending out "copyright alerts" to users who illegally download copyrighted movies, music and TV shows. If users continue to access pirated content, they would face possible sanctions at a certain point that could include slower Internet speeds.The agreement was reached last year without legislation -- which begs the question of why at least some goals of the SOPA legislation couldn't be achieved via a similar pact. The White House, which was critical of parts of the legislation, also said at the time that "this is not just a matter for legislation" and urged the sparring parties "to adopt voluntary measures and best practices to reduce online piracy." But that's easier said than done.The agreement for "copyright alerts" took almost three years to complete, and the biggest challenge may be just getting parties to the table. Cary Sherman, chairman-CEO of the Recording Industry Assn. of America, said that while agreements for "best practices" to combat piracy are in place with payment processors, and in the works with advertisers, search engines "have essentially declined to participate in conversations."Sherman, who played a major role in crafting the agreement for the copyright alerts, said that they are an "indication that if you want to make progress, you can.""We would love for it to be a model," he said.Markham Erickson, executive director of the NetCoalition, the association of Internet firms that opposed the antipiracy bills, said, "Search engines have been at the table and have created solutions on their own." He expects discussions of some sort this year but said that a "significant lack of trust between Hollywood and Silicon Valley" has to be overcome. "There needs to be more conversations so we can understand better where they are coming from and they can understand where we are coming from," he added.In the aftermath of the SOPA fracas, there is quite a bit of industry animosity directed at Google, not just for its opposition to the legislation and for what reps consider a misinformation campaign against it but for longtime gripes over how it ranks access to movies and TV shows in search results. Search engines objected to SOPA provisions -- in which courts could order the disabling of hyperlinks -- as too broadly written. Going forward, Erickson noted, they don't want to be singled out as the "cause of the problem.""Picking out even one type of distribution system, and not having a comprehensive discussion, is part of what creates the distrust," Erickson said. "There are multiple facets to the problem."Nevertheless, the Hollywood lobby is not taking to an alternative antipiracy bill embraced by many Internet firms, the Open Act, which would attempt to root out rogue websites through the International Trade Commission. Sherman says the legislation is "not a realistic alternative," declaring that its provisions would be too weak.And far from searching for a compromise, some Internet activists are turning to a new front: the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, aimed at bringing some uniformity to the way that countries enforce copyright. Protests in Europe have put ratification in doubt in some Eastern European countries, but the U.S. signed the pact last year. Again, as with the SOPA protests, entertainment industry groups say activists are engaging in a misinformation campaign, particularly on a trade agreement that was significantly softened from its earlier drafts. Sherman points to stories of lawmakers thinking twice about cybersecurity legislation, worried that they will face the same storm of protest as with SOPA if they declare their support.As big of a gulf as there may be, Sherman and other industry lobbyists talk of "reanchoring the conversation," particularly after the government's seizure of file-sharing site Megaupload."What happened a few weeks ago sort of reset the template," Erickson said. "It is clear there will have to be unanimous agreement, and that it will have to be acceptable to all the stakeholders who are engaged on this." Contact Ted Johnson at ted.johnson@variety.com

Broadway gets weekend bump

Popular musical 'Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark' grossed $1,709,139 this past week on Broadway.Broadway perked up for Presidents' Day, with the long weekend's spike in tourist traffic pushing B.O. up by almost 30% compared to the prior frame.Also adding to the pot was the bow of two new offerings including "Death of a Salesman" ($613,569 for six perfs), the Philip Seymour Hoffman starrer that pulled in solid numbers for a first week and played to auds that approached 90% of capacity. The brief run of solo outing "Shatner's World: We Just Live in It" ($305,705 for six) also bowed, playing two previews and four regular perfs including opening.Except for "The Book of Mormon" ($1,473,606), which held steady, every single production on the boards reported gains, many of them significant.The heftiest chunk of change, of course, was pulled in at the top-ticket hits including "Wicked" ($1,903,024), "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" ($1,709,139) and "The Lion King" ($1,665,141), which climbed by more than $300,000 each. Buoyed in part by the increasing prevalence of premium pricing as well as Broadway's consistently rising ticket prices across the board, "Wicked" came within spitting distance of the $2 million mark, an achievement that, in the olden days of a few years ago, used to be reserved for B.O.-busting major holidays such as Thanksgiving.A consistent indicator of the tourist tides of the Main Stem, "Mary Poppins" ($933,549) rose by 40%, while mid-charting tuners "Sister Act" ($674,710) and "Chicago" ($622,523) stepped up by more than 50% each. "The Phantom of the Opera" ($804,109), "Mamma Mia!" ($788,253) and "Memphis" ($700,497) also posted robust gains.Even some of the Street's slower sellers benefitted, particularly play "Stick Fly" ($365,277). The number in itself wouldn't turn heads, but compared to the previous sesh the tally was up by 86% in a bump also prodded by the imminent closing Feb. 26. Another production usually on the lower end of the chart, "Godspell" ($394,072), ascended 41%.Not all shows reported major gains, with productions including "Porgy and Bess" ($858,959) and "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" ($739,615) seeing more moderate rises in sales.Overall Rialto cume climbed $4.4 million to $20.1 million for 26 shows on the boards. Attendance was up by 35,000 to almost 210,000, or about 85% of overall capacity. Contact Gordon Cox at gordon.cox@variety.com

Thursday, February 16, 2012

PGA launches third ProShow

The Producers Guild of America has launched the next annual PGA Producers Showcase (ProShow) competition using the Produced By Conference on June 21-10. Ten runners up can get free admittance towards the conference within the The brand new the new sony lot and be a part of one-on-one conferences with bankers, art galleries and production companies. The winning project will probably be granted $20,000 in honours as well as the nine remaining runners up will each receive $500. Being qualified, projects ought to be a component-length script, packed for theatrical release. Qualified producers can register at Withoutabox, posting their script synopsis, bio and application. Entry fee is $55 before March 13, $75 before March 27 and $95 as much as April 17. Ten runners up will probably be introduced May 1. Contact Dork McNary at dork.mcnary@variety.com

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

'The Artist' Rules at the BAFTA Awards

LONDON Michel Hazanavicius was crowned King of the BAFTAs Sunday night, where"The Artist" was the runaway winner, converting 13 nominations into awards for best film, director, actor, screenplay, cinematography, original music and costume design.Jean Dujardin beat George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender and Gary Oldman to take the best actor award, andMeryl Streep was named best actress."The recognition of your peers is I think the most important thing," said director and writerHazanavicius. "I am so happy and touched. I know I'll have some bad days because I am a director, but I will remember this day, today, as a good day, so thank you very much. Merci beaucoup."Collecting the cinematography award, Hazanavicius got a cheer from the audience when he said: "Unfortunately, Guillaume (Schiffman) can't be here. But I guess if he were here, he would thank me." Accepting the award for screenplay, he also drew a laugh. "I'm very surprised to win this award, because so many people thought there was no script because there was no dialogue, so English people are very clever, so congratulations to you."Dislodging the silent movie in a rare category, Streep was so excited about winning the best actress award for her Margaret Thatcher biopic "The Iron Lady" that she lost a shoe in her hurry to reach the podium."That couldn't have gone worse," she said as award presenter Colin Firth retrieved her stiletto and stooped -- Walter Raleigh-style -- to place it back on her foot. But she recovered enough to pay tribute to the former British prime minister and revealed her little-known British roots."Half of me is Streep, but the other half of me is Wilkinson, from Lincolnshire, so I come by this award honestly," she said.Christopher Lee, Robert De Niro and Max von Sydow paid tribute to Martin Scorsese, who was awarded a BAFTA fellowship for his service to film.Scorsese's "Hugo," nominated in nine categories, collected BAFTAs for sound and production design.VeteranChristopher Plummer was a hugely popular winner in the best supporting actor category for his performance in "Beginners," while "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" was named outstanding British film and winner of best adapted screenplay. Accepting the screenplay award, co-writer Peter Straughan dedicated the award to his late wife, the film's co-writer Bridget O'Connor, who died in October. "My wife died before this film came out. She wrote all the good bits, I just made the coffee," he said. "Bridget, I love you, I miss you. This is for this is for you."Octavia Spencer took the best supporting actress award for "The Help," telling the BAFTA audience that she was grateful that the movie has been recognized by a British voting panel."It has been said the film is an American movie about American problems and American stories, so thank you for recognizing it, because surely oppression and strife knows no age, orientation or country."Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner and director Asif Kapadia took home the best documentary award for "Senna," the biopic of the late Formula One racing driver Ayrton Senna. The filmalso took the editing award.The Orange Rising Star award the only honor voted for by the public - went to "Kidulthood" and "Adulthood" star Adam Deacon, who is also writer, director and lead actor in British comedy "Anuvahood." John Hurt was given the award for outstanding contribution to British film."Rango" was named best animated movie.Paddy Considine and Diarmid Scrimshaw took the award for outstanding debut by a British writer, director or producer for "Tyrannosaur," whichbeat competition from Ralph Fiennes' directorial debut in "Coriolanus."The award for film not in the English language went to Pedro and Agustin Almodovar for "The Skin I Live In."Best makeup and hair award went to team behind Streep's transformation in "The Iron Lady."Tom Jones opened the ceremony with a rendition of "Thunderball,"taking attendees' minds off the freezing February cold.It was left to Cuba Gooding Jr. -- presenting the visual effects award to "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"-- to pay tribute to the lateWhitney Houston at the awards, looking up to the sky as he told the audience, "Whitney -- I will always love you." The Hollywood Reporter

Thursday, February 9, 2012

EuropaCorp laughs with 'Love'

Luc Besson's EuropaCorp is leaving sales on "Love Lasts three years,In . its finest-profile comedy hit at January's Unifrance Paris Rendez-vous.EuropaCorp has pacted for Germany with Prokino, Russia with Cinema Prestige and Chicken with Bir.In the parallel move, Jaimie Alexander ("Thor") remains cast in female lead role in EuropaCorp's upcomming thriller "Intersection."Put together by Gallic novelist and media celebrity Frederic Beigbeder, EuropaCorp's "Love Lasts" concentrates on a wise-cracking social gadfly, who's written the sunday paper proclaiming love lasts three years, however falls for his cousin's beautiful wife (Louis Bourgoin).Released by EuropaCorp in France on Jan. 18, "Love Lasts 3 YearsInch makes 3.8 million ($5 million) within the first 72 hours.In 'Intersection," Alexander plays a wealthy lately-wedded wife who conspires wih her lover to kill her husband Frank Grillo ("Gangster Squad"). Her plans fail when her husband and lover be a part of a multiple vehicle crash in the heart of the Moroccan dessert.Film author David Marconi ("Live Free or Die Hard," "Enemy in the Condition") is installed on direct."Intersection" contacts in the finish of February in Morocco mole. EuropaCorp is selling the pic within the European Film Market. Marie-Laure Montironi, EuropaCorp worldwide sales mind, mentioned before Berlin they reaches advanced discussions to seal Germany and Benelux, both now key areas for French films.Though best-recognized for its high-testosterone thrillers, EuropaCorp produces films across a wider range than frequently credited for -- from feature debuts ("Love Lasts 3 YearsInch) to art photos (Xavier Giannoli's "At firstInch), comedies and animation (Bibo Bergeron's "A Monster in Paris")."Obtaining a diversity of projects allows for just about any diversity of options to provide to worldwide entrepreneurs and television stations, both free-to-air and pay TV. It's a large strength," mentioned Montironi. Contact the number newsroom at news@variety.com

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

'Bourne Legacy' Teaser Trailer: Never Only One

There is never only one you simply did not realize that another one was performed by Jeremy Renner! Well, you now do, particularly with the discharge from the first teaser trailer for "The Bourne Legacy." Renner makes his entry in to the spy drama franchise following a exit of very long time lead Matt Damon and director Paul Greengrass, but Jason Bourne he isn't: this really is Aaron Mix, a brand new variety of amnesiac assassin that has their own share of grudges to create right. Out of the box standard for that "Bourne" franchise, the very first "Legacy" trailer is shrouded in mystery. It isn't until a lot more than midway with the teaser that people first see Aaron Mix for action, bearded at points, putting together sniper rifles at others. The scowling voice of Edward Norton promises that "Jason Bourne only agreed to be the end from the iceberg," while other agents report that they have never witnessed critiques such as the ones they have observed in Mix. It's far where the guy began, it appears: at the outset of the teaser, Mix results in like a battered and damaged guy prepared to do anything whatsoever he is able to to show his existence around. Turn his existence around he hasbut for better or worse? In either case pretty awesome teaser. For any movie that I wasn't whatsoever sure about before today, I'm all of a sudden searching toward "Bourne Legacy" much more. "The Bourne Legacy" stars Renner, Norton, Rachel Weisz, Joan Allen and Albert Finney. It storms into theaters on August 3, 2012. What have you think about the very first "Bourne Legacy" trailer? Do you consider Renner has what must be done to achieve success Damon within the franchise? Tell us within the comments section striking us on Twitter!